More history

Another hot, hot day in Savannah! I headed into town and did some more sightseeing, the highlight of which was a tour of the Georgia State Railroad Museum, which was just great. Really interesting tours of various bits, including this railway carriage. As you can see, this, like many of their exhibits, is in the process of being restored. They got the carriage some years ago and it has had a very interesting life, particularly since coming off the railroad, when it served as a dentist's office, among many other things. When they got it, they thought that it was from the 1930s I think, but as they stripped it back they realised that it was from the 1880s-1890s, and research was turning up more and more information about what and where this carriage has been. The aim is to make it and part of the building next to where it now stands in their Round House into an exhibit about Southern history - more specifically the racial side of Southern history. As they stripped it back, they found that the rooms were not modern additions, but were originally there as the carriage had been used in the Jim Crow era, when rail travel was segregated. The museum has great plans for many areas, both locomotives and buildings, and limited funds, so I am not sure when they will get this one done, but it should be really interesting when it is finished. They also had some executive cars which used to belong to Central of Georgia, the railway company which used to own and run many of the lines in Georgia. The museum's venue used to be one of their depots. Definitely worth a visit. You can even have a go on a hand operated rail cart!